Prisoner Injured While Trying to Separate Guards Fighting Over Bag of Potato Chips

Two New York state corrections officers have been suspended with pay after they began to fight over a bag of chips last Thursday -- knocking out a prisoner's tooth, who was trying to break up the fight. The brawling jailers have been identified as Lawrence Mule, a 26-year veteran of the force, and James Conlin, a 29-year veteran. The incident happened at the Erie County Correctional Facility in Alden, NY, which holds inmates sentenced to terms of one year or less.

[Undersheriff Mark N. Wipperman] said the disagreement began over "what appears to be the dissemination of food products." A source familiar with the event said a bag of potato chips somehow sparked the fight. He asked to remain unidentified because he lacks permission to disclose information about the facility. Wipperman said the inmate told internal investigators that he got involved because he likes both officers and didn't want them to lose their jobs. The inmate was taken to the prison infirmary and then Erie County Medical Center before being returned to the correctional facility, Wipperman said. He would not confirm that the inmate lost a tooth nor describe the extent of his injuries, citing federal privacy regulations. Together, the two officers have about 55 years of experience. Some co-workers are shaking their heads over the officers' lapse in judgment. They speculate that the fight indicates, to some degree, the stress on officers often forced to work double shifts to meet state-ordered staffing levels.source

Aren't we glad they weren't fighting over something stupid like a Snickers bar or a woman.